This September, Rommel started working in an international kindergarten in Shanghai. This is a new experience for him after working in training centers and primary schools. But nothing is too difficult with proper help. Rommel got a lot of help from Vanilla, who is one of the recruitment consultants from MGTS. Here's how Rommel's story unfolded!

My name is Rommel.  I am from the Caribbean island of Barbados and I have just started working at an international kindergarten in the Jiading District of Shanghai, China.  I have lived in Shanghai for almost three years and during that time I worked in a training center.  However as a primary school teacher of twelve years I wanted to find a place which would be a little closer to my foundation as a class teacher. I was delighted that I was able to successfully land a job with the help of MGTS in an International Kindergarten.

My experience started with Vanilla.  She is a recruitment consultant from MGTS,   a company based in Shenzhen.  I found her to be very professional in her approach and she responded to all my queries very quickly and efficiently.  When we first met on WeChat and she pitched the idea of coming to the kindergarten I wanted more than anything to have a voice conversation because I know that things can be easily lost in translation through text.  She readily accommodated my request and in doing so she put some of my doubts to rest.  

I then had an interview with the principal of the kindergarten and Vanilla acted as the translator.  Having her there was reassuring for me as a “familiar face”.  The interview went well and a few days later I was given a very generous offer.

Vanilla was very efficient as the “middle-man” between myself and the management of the kindergarten. She was even able to facilitate a conversation between myself and another foreign teacher which I requested as a part of my due diligence.

The transitional period was rough and at times very stressful for me but whenever I reached out to her she had a quick and reassuring response which most times put me at ease.  She really went the extra mile to try to make things go as smoothly as possible and when she didn’t have the answers to my questions, she put me in contact with people who did.

As I started my tenure at the kindergarten she would routinely contact me to check up and find out how I was doing and if there was anything I needed.  I found this all very reassuring being in a new work space and a new teaching system.

My start at the kindergarten was an interesting experience.  No job is perfect and it came with some challenges but it was nothing too stressful.  The main challenge I had was adjusting my mentality from training center working hours to kindergarten working hours.  Then after that, getting used to the various systems of management at kindergarten, such as the morning routine, the daily schedule, getting acquainted with the teachers and the students as well as the various things I was required to do.  The first person I met at the school was Jasmine.  She acts as the go-between between the foreign teachers and the management of the kindergarten. She also ran meetings and coordinated our orientation on the first three days before school officially started. I found her to be very pleasant and efficient as she tried to meet the needs of the foreign teachers while also being an English teacher herself.  I find that she was also quick to answer any questions I had and would listen to suggestions I made.

I was later introduced to the three teachers I would be working with: Lynn, Zora and Lily.  They too were all very pleasant and listened to any suggestions I made on classroom management as I drew from my now fourteen years of teaching.  I too in turn also took their advice on how I could improve my interactions with the students as I was in a new environment.  We were assigned to a class of students who have a wide range of personalities and even though it can be a bit tiring, it is still an enjoyable experience!

After a month I can say that I am having a blast.  There are various subjects and activities which these children are exposed to which facilitate all types of learning. My favourite is LER (Life Experience Room) which is a monthly cooking class that I do with the students.  It gives me the opportunity to teach English while preparing a meal with my students: So far we have done Mooncakes and Vegetarian Monsters.

I encourage any foreign teacher out there looking for a place to work which has a good work environment and gives a sense of fulfillment to look no further than MGTS.  If it can work for a 42-year-old primary school teacher from Barbados, it can work for you!